MEDIA KIT

P O N T I F I C A L

ORIENTALI N S T I T U T E

Established 1917

1922

1928

The Jesuits

Rerum Orientalium

The pontifical institute was established in

1917 by Pope Benedict XV.

Pope Pius XI entrusted the Institute to the

Society of Jesus.

Bishops were encouraged to send students

to the Institute to be formed as future

professors in Oriental studies.

350

48

Post grad students

countriesFrom

In a typical year, the Oriental Institute has

between 300 and 400 students, both lay

and religious, from more than 40 countries.

It attracts students not only from the

Eastern Churches, but also from the Roman

Catholic and Protestant Churches, as well as

non Christians.

is the premier center for the study of Eastern

Christianity in Rome, Italy. The pontifical

institute was established in 1917 by Pope

Benedict XV. Pope Pius XI entrusted the

Institute to the Society of Jesus in 1922, and

with the 1928 encyclical “Rerum Orienta-

lium” encouraged bishops to send students

to the Institute to be formed as future

professors in Oriental studies. In that same

year, Pius XI associated the Institute with

the Pontifical Gregorian University and the

Pontifical Biblical Institute, thus forming

the Gregorian Consortium.

The Pontifical Oriental Institute or “Orientale”

In 1971, the Faculty of Oriental

Canon Law was erected alongside the

already existing Faculty of Oriental Eccle-

siastical Studies. The Faculty of Oriental

Canon Law had a crucial role in the produc-

tion of Code of Canon Law for the Oriental

Churches. The Institute has been located

across from the Basilica of Santa Maria

Maggiore since 1926. It is separated from

the Collegium Russicum by the Church of

Saint Antony. According to article 16 of

the Lateran Treaty, signed in 1929 between

Italy and the Holy See, the property of the

Oriental Institute enjoys a certain level of

extraterritoriality, with the Holy See having

all rights over the infrastructure without

interference from the Italian State, and free

from all Italian taxation.

Since 1993, the Grand Chancellor of the

Oriental Institute has been the Cardinal

Prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental

Churches, in 2016 it was

Cardinal Leonardo Sandri (left), while the

Rector was Fr. David Nazar, S.J. (right).

The first president of the Institute was

Alfredo Ildefonso Schuster, Abbot of

St. Paul and the Archbishop of Milan. With

“the grand design to build a bridge between

the East and the West”, Schuster expressed

that, “the Pontifical Oriental Institute had

to be an academy dedicated exclusively to

the study of various theological subjects

cultivated in the East” (Benedict XV on The

Union of Churches Conference held at the

Catholic University in 1940).

First President Institutional Focus• The Pontifical Oriental Institute offers Licentiate

and Doctoral degrees in Eastern Canon Law, Eastern

Ecclesiastical Studies and a Propaedeutic year of

formation for Seminarians.

• For Rome to have an Institute for the promotion of

Eastern Studies—placed under the special supervision

and care of the Supreme Pontiff—is thus awarded the

title of “Pontifical”

• The Institute will be directly aligned to the Sacred

Congregation for the Eastern Church

• The Institute will have its own distinct office in

the Vatican

• The Institute will teach the following subjects: a)

Orthodox Theology encompassing various Christian

Doctrine, with Eastern Patrology courses, and Histor-

ical Theology b) Canon law of all Christian peoples of

the East c) Eastern Liturgy d) History, both sacred and

civil, of Byzantium and the rest of the East; will conjoin

Geography courses, Sacred Archaeology, and Civil

Constitutions e) Literature and Oriental languages.

230K volumes

2,600 periodicals 2,000 volumes/year

The Library

The General Collectioncontains 184.000 volumes making the library of the Pontifical Oriental Institute the best gen-

eral collection in the world on Eastern Christianity. Nowhere else in the world can one find

together in the same library nearly everything an orientalist scholar could need to research

any aspect of Eastern Christendom.

The collection of liturgical books on Eastern Christian traditionsUnique to the general collection is its rich selection of the official liturgical books, Orthodox,

Oriental Orthodox, and Eastern Catholic, in the main Eastern Christian liturgical languages

(Greek, Slavonic, Romanian, Arabic, Syriac, Armenian, Coptic, Ge‘ez (Ethiopic), Malayalam,

as well as in translations of the modern vernacular tongues into which many of the Eastern

rites are gradually moving.This collection has been instrumental in facilitating the institute’s

scholarly work and more discretely their work for the Holy See as consultors of the Vatican

Congregation for the Oriental Churches.

The East European Collection (Russian, Ukrainian)Prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Library was regularly visited by Soviet and other

East-Bloc scholars to read the Russian, Ukrainian, and other Slavic and Slavonic sources that

were difficult to access under the Communist regime. Especially rich are the PIO Library

holdings on the two most important lands of Slavic Eastern Christianity, Ukraine and Russia,

the historic “Kievan Rus’,” heartland and cradle of Slavia Orthodoxa.

Current Periodicals 2,600 periodicals including 500 current ones still being pub-

lished—represent a rich collection of scholarly journals from every corner of the world and

every Eastern Church. These current periodicals are an essential tool for maintaining knowledge

of the current situation of those Churches and their present life, with its problems and interests.

Pre-Soviet Russian Theological Periodicals: Among the no-longer current journals is the

collection of pre-revolutionary Russian-Orthodox theological scholarly periodicals, mis-

cellaneous Russian Orthodox religious journals, and official Russian Imperial government

publications concerning related issues like public education. In pre-Soviet times the Russian

Church had an extraordinarily vital academic theological culture of the highest scholarly level,

and their publications are a goldmine for anyone doing research on the history of Orthodoxy

and its scholarship.

Pre-Soviet Russian collection on Russian Orthodox Monasteries: Much smaller, and less well-

known, is the collection of pre-Soviet booklets in Russian on Russian Orthodox monasteries.

Slavonic Manuscripts Collection: The PIO Library collection is the second largest Slavonic

manuscript collection in Italy after the Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana. These manuscripts,

dating from the 16th c. on, are largely Orthodox liturgical books in Church Slavonic, the

historic traditional liturgical language of the Slavic Churches.

Rare Manuscripts and Imprints: Of perhaps even greater importance are rare early imprints,

including early imprint holdings in Slavonic, an astounding collection of 113 volumes dating

from 1491 to 1596. These holdings comprise some of the most important Slavonic books

ever printed. A notable book within the collection of rare sources is Trebnik (Book of Needs)

of St. Peter Moghila, published in Kiev in 1646 (66), is one of the most historically important

liturgical books for the study of the Byzantine Slavonic rite in the turbulent 17th c.

Pre-Soviet Russian Theological PeriodicalsAmong the no-longer current journals is the collection of pre-revolutionary Russian-Ortho-

dox theological scholarly periodicals, miscellaneous Russian Orthodox religious journals, and

official Russian Imperial government publications concerning related issues like public educa-

tion. In pre-Soviet times the Russian Church had an extraordinarily vital academic theological

culture of the highest scholarly level, and their publications are a goldmine for anyone doing

research on the history of Orthodoxy and its scholarship.

Pre-Soviet Russian collection on Russian Orthodox MonasteriesMuch smaller, and less well-known, is the collection of pre-Soviet booklets in Russian on

Russian Orthodox monasteries.

Slavonic Manuscripts CollectionThe PIO Library collection is the second largest Slavonic manuscript collection in Italy after

the Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana. These manuscripts, dating from the 16th c. on, are large-

ly Orthodox liturgical books in Church Slavonic, the historic traditional liturgical language of

the Slavic Churches.

Rare Manuscripts and ImprintsOf perhaps even greater importance are rare early imprints, including early imprint holdings

in Slavonic, an astounding collection of 113 volumes dating from 1491 to 1596. These

holdings comprise some of the most important Slavonic books ever printed. A notable book

within the collection of rare sources is Trebnik (Book of Needs) of St. Peter Moghila, pub-

lished in Kiev in 1646 (66), is one of the most historically important liturgical books for the

study of the Byzantine Slavonic rite in the turbulent 17th c.

The Orientale hosts the only Catholic faculty of Oriental Canon Law in the world.

This faculty of Oriental Canon Law played a significant role in the production of

the Code of Canon Law for the Oriental Churches. Studies in the faculty also deal

with the historical development of canons, the theology and practice of canon law,

as well as the particular canons of specific churches.